Technology stocks have rallied impressively over the past month, evident from the 16% jump in the Nasdaq-100 Technology Sector index. Solid earnings reports from some of the sector's top names are probably giving investors confidence once again in tech stocks, which have otherwise taken a big beating so far in 2022.
Today, we will take a closer look at three top tech stocks that are available at attractive valuations right now but have the potential to surge higher.
1. Microsoft
Microsoft (MSFT -1.18%) released its fiscal 2022 fourth-quarter results (for the period ended June 30) on July 26. In constant currency terms, the company's revenue increased 16% year over year to $51.9 billion while adjusted earnings were up 8% to $2.23 per share. The numbers were below Wall Street's expectations of $2.29 per share and $52.4 billion in revenue on account of a poor environment for personal computer (PC) sales.
However, the company's outlook saved the day. Microsoft expects $49.75 billion in revenue in the current quarter, or a 10% increase over the prior-year period. The company also expects double-digit revenue and operating income growth for the year, which is impressive considering it's facing weaker PC sales, a drop in advertising spending, and Russia's war with Ukraine.
Last quarter, Microsoft lost $400 million in revenue in the Windows as well as search and news advertising businesses due to these headwinds. But the company's outlook remains solid, given key growth drivers such as the cloud and its productivity business.
Microsoft's Intelligent Cloud business produced $20.9 billion in revenue last quarter, accounting for 40% of the top line. The segment's revenue was up 20% year over year, thanks to healthy demand for Microsoft's server products and cloud services. The cloud business has a lot of room for growth, and Microsoft is a leading player.
The company controlled 21% of the global cloud services market in the second quarter, according to Synergy Research Group. The public cloud market could generate $552 billion in revenue by 2027, according to estimates published by Statista -- a big jump over last year's outlay of $364 billion. So Microsoft's solid position in the cloud computing market should accelerate the company's growth ahead.
That's why investors looking to buy a tech stock right now should consider scooping up Microsoft, and it is trading at 29 times earnings, a sizable discount to its five-year average price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of 37.
2. Cirrus Logic
Cirrus Logic (CRUS -1.20%) is a fast-growing company that investors can buy at an attractive valuation right now. The company, whose biggest customer is smartphone giant Apple (AAPL -1.22%), is trading at just 15 times trailing earnings. Cirrus reported $394 million in revenue for the first quarter of its fiscal 2023 (ended June 25, 2022). Its top line increased a whopping 42% year over year. Meanwhile, earnings jumped to $0.69 per share from $0.29 in the prior-year period.
Apple accounted for 79% of Cirrus' quarterly revenue, which is why the latter's impressive growth wasn't surprising. The chipmaker supplies power conversion chips and audio codecs used by Apple in such devices as the iPhone. Cirrus makes more money from each unit of the iPhone 13 lineup than earlier devices. That's because Apple started using its power conversion chips last year in addition to the audio codecs that it has been deploying for a long time.
The higher-dollar content, along with Apple's smartphone sales growth last quarter, explains why Cirrus recorded red-hot jumps in revenue and earnings. The company anticipates 19% sequential revenue growth this quarter to $470 million at the midpoint of its guidance range, helped by Apple's reported ramping up the production of its next-generation iPhone.
More importantly, Cirrus looks built for long-term growth as the company is sitting on two key growth drivers. First is the high-performance mixed-signal (HPMS) business, wherein Cirrus sees an addressable revenue opportunity worth $4.2 billion by 2026 compared to $1 billion in 2021. The HPMS business generated $139 million in revenue last quarter, a big jump from $60 million in the prior-year period.
Cirrus is just scratching the surface of a massive opportunity in this segment that could give its top and bottom lines a big boost in the long run. This makes Cirrus a top semiconductor stock to buy this month as it seems capable of sustaining its impressive growth.
3. Applied Materials
Applied Materials (AMAT -1.62%) is another company trading at a dirt-cheap valuation. It sports a P/E multiple of just 14.5 and a forward earnings multiple of 12.9. Those are way lower than the Nasdaq-100's earnings multiple of 27. Buying Applied Materials at its current valuation looks like a no-brainer.
That's because the company is built for long-term growth amid the semiconductor boom. Known for selling chip manufacturing equipment, Applied Materials is witnessing healthy demand for its offerings. This was evident from management's comments on the company's May earnings conference call when CFO Brice Hill remarked: "Our backlog continues to grow, and we have visibility from our customers extending into 2023 and beyond."
Though Applied Materials management didn't spell out the exact amount of the backlog in May, the company had a record backlog worth $8 billion in the first quarter of fiscal 2022 for the three months ended January 30. The second-quarter commentary indicates that the backlog has grown further. And that's not surprising, given the growing outlay on semiconductor manufacturing equipment.
An estimate by Allied Analytics indicates that global semiconductor equipment sales could hit $118 billion this year, an increase of nearly 15% over 2021. The market is expected to keep growing in the long run and hit nearly $260 billion in revenue by the end of the decade. This explains why analysts forecast Applied Materials' earnings to increase at nearly 14% annually for the next five years, making it a top tech stock to buy right now -- and considering its attractive valuation.
